Today’s Top Stories
1. Israel arrested a UN aid worker it accused of using his position to help Hamas. Wahid Abdullah Burash, an employee of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) “allegedly helped build a naval marina for use by Hamas’s military in northern Gaza.” The Jerusalem Post reports:
Burash also reportedly convinced his manager at UNDP to give preference in rehabilitation projects to areas inhabited by Hamas operatives.
When weapons or tunnel openings were discovered in homes being worked on as part of UNDP projects, UN procedure to report such findings was not followed, the Shin Bet investigation allegedly found.
The interrogation of Burash uncovered additional Hamas operatives embedded in other aid organizations, the Shin Bet added.
Separately, Save the Children is looking into an accusation that one of its personnel is also a Hamas operative. All this comes on the heels of last week’s arrest of Mohammed Halabi, the Gaza director of World Vision, who is accused of funneling millions in aid money to Hamas.
2. Wait, what? A Palestinian Authority employee was fired for rescuing Israeli terror victims and settler leaders are now helping him find work. The man, identified only as J., was one of the first people to offer assistance when terrorists shot up a car near Hebron, killing Rabbi Miki Mark and injuring his wife and daughter.
A relative of J.’s told Israel Hayom that “since it became clear that he was the first to arrive at the scene of the attack and that he helped the victims, he and his family have been subjected to a smear campaign and received threats.
“He is not scared, but it bothers him that he and his family have become outcasts since the event. More than anything, it hurts him that he was fired from his job in the public sector of the Palestinian Authority. They told him that he was let go because of budget cuts, but he was the only one who was fired a few days after the incident.”
The relative stressed that J. does not regret his decision to help the Mark family.
3. According to Haaretz, Hamas is deeply split on whether to renew ties with Iran or seek funds from Sunni countries.
Join the fight for Israel’s fair coverage in the news
4. Reuters Belly-Flops on Fact Checking: A fact-checking failure exposes Reuters like the hapless kid whose trunks come off while diving headfirst into the pool.
Israel and the Palestinians
• This is going to raise some tensions with Europe:
IDF demolishes EU-funded Palestinian homes in South Hebron Hills
• Dueling election campaign videos by Hamas and Fatah spin Gaza as either heaven on earth, or an utter dump. Hat tip IsraellyCool.
• Pentagon eyes US Iron Dome built in partnership with Israel to defend American forward-based forces around the world, reports Defense News.
• Time takes a surprisingly in-depth look at how the IDF treats transgender soldiers as the US army looks to Israel for guidance.
Around the World
• Worth watching: John Oliver on the state of news industry.
Commentary/Analysis
• Here’s what else I’m reading today . . .
– Itai Reuveni: BDS and the tourist Trojan horse
– Graham Allison: Why ISIS fears Israel
– Fred Maroun: As a Lebanese, I demand Lebanon be banned from the Olympics
Featured image: CC BY-NC Ben Raynal with additions by HonestReporting;
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